When a heart dies
by EvannaLy
Summary: „No!", she whispered in fear and rushed to the garage with vampire speed. One glance confirmed her suspicion, his car was gone. She slided to the floor, her back to the wall, her arms clasping around her legs. „No!" - Set at the end of season 5 from Carolines perspective after Bonnie and Damon died and Stefan left the town for good.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone,**

 **this is a two-shot about Caroline after Bonnie and Damon had disappeared into the light at the end of season 5.**

 **It is more hurt than comfort and the other characters are really OC most of the time.**

 **I hope you enjoy the reading and as always excuse my spelling and grammar mistakes, for english is not my birth language.**

 **Greetings, EvannaLy**

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 **When a heart dies**

Caroline was petrified. Damon? Dead! Bonnie? Dead! She sobbed silently and followed Stefan who had walked into the dark forest, away from the place where the unbelievable had happened. How would Elena cope with that mess? And Jeremy? He'd already lost Bonnie once. But the two of them had at least each other and Alaric would also be there to comfort them. Stefan on the other hand – he was alone, he had no one left.

She would help him. She had to help him!

Caroline found him sitting on an old stone bench in a very old part of the forest. He had collapsed there and she could see that he was crying. She hurried to him and embraced him without a word. He buried his head in her shoulder, his grip tight around her waist. She was crying too. Bonnie! It pained too much!

After a long time of just sitting there, grieving, she finally managed to bring him home. They couldn't have stayed in the wood forever. „Thank you, Caroline", he whispered as they reached the front door. It broke her heart to see her best friend like this. „Stefan, you have nothing to thank for!" She smiled at him. „Listen!", she started determinedly. „Go to bed. Sleep a little, or at least try to rest! Tomorrow I will come back and we can talk about all of this! We can do this together, we will find a way to make everything right, ok?", „Okay".

She smiled sadly, hugged him again and turned to go home, thoughts swirling wildly in her mind, everything in chaos. After explaining everything to her mother she fell exhausted on her bed, her thoughts still lingering with Bonnie...

The next morning started with swollen eyes and a bad mood. She had barely slept at all but hold herself together – she had to look after Stefan.

Armed with a picnic basket she went to the Salvatore mansion and entered it without a second thought. The time of knocking was far gone. „Stefan?", she shouted into the house. „Stefan, where are you?" Silence. Slowly a bad feeling took hold of herself. She layed her basket aside and started to search the house. As she entered Stefans room, she stocked. All of his drawers were open, clothes covered the whole floor. What was even more obvious were the things that were missing.

„No!", she whispered in fear and rushed to the garage with vampire speed. One glance confirmed her suspicion, his car was gone. She slided to the floor, her back to the wall, her arms clasping around her legs. „No!"

During the next few days and weeks Caroline got more and more introverted. After she had found out about Stefans flight she had tried to call Elena, without success. As she had searched for her in the college after that she had found her in their room, sitting on her bed as if nothing happened.

„Elena, I've tried to-", „Shut up Caroline!". Caroline stared at her friend, disbelieving, stunned. „No offence, Care, but I can't and don't want right now. I've talked to Jeremy and Alaric and we've decided to leave Mystic Falls for a while.", „WHAT?", „There's no chance to change our mind, Caroline. We will travel a bit, celebrate Alarics return. And cut the connections to this cursed city and all its inhabitants!", „You, you actually mean to – are you serious?", „Yes Care, I also meant the connection to you."

Caroline couldn't understand what was happening. Was everyone turning mad?

„But-", „Leave it. It's not like it will be forever." Elena stared at her with cold eyes, colder, as Caroline had ever thought possible. Elena stood up from her bed and began to pack all of her clothes in her suitcase. Only now Caroline realized how Elenas part of the room was already almost completely empty.

Caroline stumbled a few steps backwards and turned around. He was stunned. Her best friends were just leaving her behind, abandoned her! She couldn't believe it.

Firstly she hurried to Jeremy. She had to talk with _someone,_ but he simply told her that he wanted to be alone and and slammed the door. She felt hunted and sweat appeared on her forehead. Matt was the next on her list. He already seemed to know what she wanted and answered before she said a single word. „Listen Care, I know how hard everything is right now, but I need a break, no more vampires, werewolves or hybrids, at least for a while!", „I'm your friend for god's sake! For how many years?", she uttered angrily. „I know. It has nothing to do with you." Another door closed infront of her.

Her despair let her even go to Tyler, but one glance through a window into his living room showed her him together with Hayley and she went away at once. One thougth hunted the next and her heart broke silently in her chest. Stefan! Elena! Matt! Even Jeremy, Tyler! Stefan! She couldn't belive how ALL of them could let her down. Had she failed them in the past? Was it a form of revenge somehow?

She couldn't think of a moment where she had been so devastated before.

It was in this moment she decided to everything in her power to bring Bonnie back. Whatever it would take! In one month she managed to find a willing witch and all details of a possible spell. When she was for 100% sure that everything would turn out right she informed – despite her anger and still remaining pain – all of her friends. They came, all of them, only Stefan was missing. Stefan!

The witch started her ritual chants, ignited the flames, spoke in ancient words. Caroline knelt in the center of a pentagramm – she would give Bonnie some of her life energy. The witch reached the climax and Caroline let some of her blood fall down on the ground, covered with fallen leaves. Everyone held their breath. Caroline felt as if a part of her very soul was ripped away and she collapsed in pain.

In the next moment all flames were extinguished. Caroline lifted her head up and saw Bonnie, standing in front of her, staring at her surroundings in disbelief. Tears of relief ran down Carolines cheeks and she struggled to stand up.

Bonnies eyes were also filled with tears as she saw her friends standing there. She made one, two unsteady steps, then started to run. Caroline began to open her arms, but Bonnie didn't even seem to realize she was standing there and fell directly into the arms of Elena. Caroline turned slowly on the spot and watched the scene before her. Bonnie was pulled out of Elenas embrace into a desperate kiss by Jeremy, then Matt stepped forward.

Caroline was speechless. SHE was the one who had moved mountains to find a way to bring Bonnie back! SHE was the one who had sacrificed a part of her! And despite all of that she wasn't even worth a glance from Bonnie! Elena would always come first, she realized bitterly. Slowly she retreated into the dark shadows of the trees and left unnoticed by the others.

She felt nothing. In a hurry she packed the most important things, throwed them into her car and left the town. She had reached her end. She couldn't move on from this. One last time she tried to call Stefan, but reached only his voicemail, just how she'd expected. She moved her hand over her moisted eyes and raced towards Canada. She wanted to go away. Away from everything. So far away that she maybe would have a chance to forget.

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 **Reviews? :D**

 **In the next chapter Caroline will return to Mystic Falls.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here comes the second part.  
**

 **It is a little bit shorter than the first:)**

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Six months later she was on the same road in the opposite direction. Even though she knew that it would probably left her even more in pain than before, she returned. Her mother had called her, Stefan was back in town. Caroline just wanted to speak with him once, wanted to hear his reasons from himself.

When she had reached her destination she embraced her mother and held her tight. She had missed her so much, but she just had had to leave. „He's in his house.", „Tanks, Mom", she whispered. „And Care, he had apologized to everyone for leaving without a word. He's been here too." Caroline gave her a nod and felt a small flame of hope in her chest.

She went directly to the Salvatore mansion and knocked. It was as if she'd never were away. After a moment of waiting while holding her breath the door was opened and she stared into Stefans face. Oh, how she'd missed him. He looked the same and at the same time completely different.

„Caroline!", „I, my mom – she said you wanted to apologize?", she sounded confused and accusing, but were unable to react any different. „Caroline, it's not the right moment to-", „Not the right moment? Do you have any idea how worried I was about you? How it was for me to come back and find the whole house empty? And how you never even answered your damn phone once?" She had become louder with every word and stared furiously at him. Then she noticed the bags standing in the entrance. She was speechless, could do nothing more than to stare at him incredulously. He stared back.

„You want to leave again?", she asked finally. Every trace of emotion had disappeared from her voice. „I need to start over." Caroline had to take a deep breath to prevent herself from punching him straight in his face. „You run away, that's what you do! Again! You don't want to start over, you want to hide from the past!" She swallowed. „If even just a tiny little part of you had wondered how everything was coping, had worried about us, about ME, then stay!"

For a moment he looked into her eyes. Then he grabbed his bags and walked past her. Caroline remained standing there and began to sob quietly. Her world had crumbled down for the second time, the small flame of hope dissolved, she felt empty.

When she returned home hours later her mother were still waiting for her. „Care, you have to listen to me closely! You have been busy with different stuff earlier, but Stefan wasn't the only reason I wanted you to come back." Caroline was absolutely in no condition for deep talk, but stayed silent for the sake of her mother nonetheless. „Care, I – I'm – I don't know how to tell you this-", „Just tell me, Mom!", „I have cancer." Caroline was stunned. After a moment her brain processed the information and she jumped from her seat. „How bad is it? Can I heal it with my blood? Since when do you know?" She started to panic. It felt like her heart was being wrenched in ice cold hands.

„I have known now for a few months. It's bad Care, really bad. Your blood can't help me, so I will be a stationary patient from next week on. I've already tried a chemo therapy, but..." She began to cry and Caroline? She fell apart. It was all too much. How could her Mom who had dealt with so much throughout her life – she had been a cop, for god's sake – get defeated by a incurable disease in the end? She couldn't believe it.

The next few months went by in a blur until Elizabeth Forbes finally succumbed to her illness. Caroline had hold her hand in hers as she had peacefully fall asleep.

During the time she had planned the funeral, solely and without any help, she had been able to lock her thoughts away, at least during the days. The nights on the other hand, well, it wasn't as though she wasn't accustomed to nightmares.

After the sad gathering with a small selected number of people, without Bonnie, without Elena, Matt, Tyler or Jer, without Stefan, she eventually sat in the house she once thought of as home. She remembered her old life and faced a rubble heap. She inspected her heart and saw tiny splinters. This was the moment she turned of her feelings, where she banned every emotion out of her life. Nobody would be able to hurt her anymore! Her heart wouldn't die again!

She was ready. She was Caroline Forbes!

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 **Reviews?:D**


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